Bee's Soulteez

This was one of three random free samples from Bee’s Soulteez. Thank you!

Cold Brew

This mate blend is a lot gentler than I expected it to be and smells deliciously fruity after sitting in the fridge overnight. The hibiscus is a mild berry note – it’s fruitiness accentuated by the apple. Rosemary is refreshing here and has an effect similar to lavender (floral, fresh, herbaceous). Mate is slightly earthy, pairs well with the rosemary, and is a nice pick-me-up when coupled with the juicy and floral profile.

So, this one doesn’t taste at all like Amaretto. I probably should’ve expected that when the blend consisted of cranberries as opposed to cherries or marzipan pieces, but still I’d hoped. No surprises that it tastes mostly cranberries and almonds, even when sugar and/or milk is added. C’est la vie.

It did taste like Amaretto after I added Amaretto liqueur though! So, yeah. Not my favourite.

As per the description for this tea:“the classic ginger bite” is probably the thing that turns me off this kind of sencha base. However, I have to give it props here; it pairs nicely with the subtle papaya and rich pecan notes. The aftertaste leaves a mouthful of provocative and warming fruity nut and honey-like flavours. The aroma (nutty) is also lovely.

My mother was an even bigger fan than me (doesn’t have my Chinese sencha bias). She rates it a 9/10.

Just be careful not to overleaf or oversteep; this green base can get nippy!

This tea has tea has two ingredients I’ve never heard of and didn’t bother to look up before placing my order. These are Maca (Peruvian ginseng) and Pau D’Arco (South American tree bark).

I’m combining two different drinking sessions in one note.

First Attempt: 8 minutes, two teaspoons = oversteeped

The aroma of both the blend and steeped cup is 99.9% cinnamon and apple, with a hint of sweet nutty earth. Cup flavour profile is vibing on baked cinnamon apple. There is an initial strong liquid maple syrup drip, that tones down a bit over time, as well as a dry woody and tangy lingering quality, not dissimilar to green apple. This builds.

I don’t “the dry” but do think this would make a particularly lovely cup on a wet fall evening. I’m going to try and play with the steeping parameters (meaning I will obey them this time, lol) to see if I can mitigate “the dry”.

Second Attempt: 6 minutes, 1 1/2 teaspoons

I forgot about this one so drank it lukewarm to cool. Cinnamon Apple is still No.1 with a hint of beet, honeybush, ginseng, and thin maple. I still think the broth is on the thin side, not dissimilar to how thin maple syrup is, but the dry is much more manageable. Huzzah!

Sipdown!

This session is pretty different from my earlier one. There are far more tea leaves to fruit in this last serving. The fact that this is a roasted oolong is much more noticeable, and it brings out the dried goji berries more while diminishing the impression of ripe melons and sweetness.

I still like this quite a bit particularly as it cools. It’s almost caramelized/ slightly creamy but also fruity and roasted. I’m having a hard time describing it and it’s not consistent enough a thing to pinpoint.

Steep Count: 2

This was one of three random free samples from Bee’s Soulteez. Thank you!

When I saw goji berries I wrongly assumed this would be a slightly nutty-tart vitamin-c oolong blend. What I actually got was an awesome bright and sweet goji berry/ honeydew melon-like profile, with floral notes of honeysuckle. The flavour held up for at least four steeps and probably would’ve gone for longer if I hadn’t neglected the fifth.

Also, I was not aware that wolfberry was another name for a goji berry.

Steep Count: 4

This was included as a random free sample from Bee’s Soulteez. Thank you!

This is a pretty standard chocolatey mint tea, and has a smooth and satisfying After Eight profile, but more natural/less candy-like than some of its peers. It definitely hits the spot after overeating (Final essay stress + butter chicken = max, possibly unhealthy, level of indulgence. Whoops). The creamy-fresh peppermint aroma alone seems to help right away and provides a soothing back-drop to (hypothetical) writing and plotting. Off I go, I guess, while most of the “jitterys” are subdued. lol

I tried this first straight up, but it’s even better with milk. Amplified the creaminess.

Bumping up the rating on this one. I forgot about this one and totally oversteeped it, and it actually improved. On a blind test, my mom was a big fan too. It’s so smooth and boozy. A brown sugar-like sweetness is also peaking through and it’s delicious with the pineapple. It makes a perfect tropical, but hearty, latte for these overcast and rainy summer days that our Northwest Coast weather system seems to be churning out lately (this also lowers the chance of forest fires so none of us are too mad, I don’t think. The Cedars, Firs, and Spruce love it too and they definitely deserve some happiness after the last few killing summers).

Taken with milk.

This one is pretty nice, with a satisfying combo of pineapple, coconut, and malt notes. The coconut is a little baffling, because it’s not a listed ingredient, but I swear you can taste it; the nutty element may be attributed to the sunflower, as well as my brain’s tendency to pair pineapple with coconut! The tea also delivers on the booze, with an aggressive astringent nip.

All in all, I enjoy this one, even if I wish the base was something more special! I enjoyed the far sweeter Buttered Rum from David’s Tea+, and the more perilous but fancier One Night in Rio! from Camellia Sinensis (always scared coconut will expire and become soap), so not too surprised I like this one as well. I’m going to play around, and potentially make it into a Rum Hot Toddy or a Sweet Tea Rum Punch (Note to self: https://food52.com/recipes/77603-sweet-tea-rum-punch).

+Buttered Rum: A spider (Edit: probably wasn’t a spider as ashmanra points out) somehow made it’s home in my last tin. Needless to say I didn’t get to savour my remaining 40 grams, because.Webs.Everywhere. I’m still heartbroken but at least we have other rum teas!

TMI or TW: If bugs make you uncomfortable you probably won’t want to read the comments on this note!